Between You and Me
by For Rhyme or Reason
Summary: The city of Coeur may seem like a typical city when you first look at it. But when you look close, you'll find a war; a war between evolved monster-like beings and the true monsters. Nine chosen humans have been fused with the DNA of the Eeveelutions to fight against the invading darkness. But not all choose light. SYOC! CLOSED! [Gijinka] R&R
1. Prologue

_**Prologue**_

* * *

There it was; right in front of her nose. All she had to do was grab it. All she had to do was type. She already had her plot laid out, her characters' bios fleshed out, everything she needed planned to a point. All she needed to do was tie all these things together and form a story. Really, it sounded easy, especially with how organized everything was. She just needed to type, yet the screen in front of her remained white.

"Why is this so difficult?!" Mana shouted, breaking the silence that had once hung through the room.

She threw her head back as a long sigh escaped her mouth. Her hands banged against the keyboard, sending random letters to appear on the screen instead of anything that would make sense. She didn't know what was going on. She had the story in her head, yet she couldn't seem to capture it properly in words. It had never been this hard for her to write a story, yet here she was struggling just to start one.

"Why?" she cried out, falling forward.

Her head hit the keyboard with a loud thud blended with key clicking noises. More gibberish formed on her screen. She rolled her head up a bit so she could look at the screen.

"I wonder if Glasgow would take this as my story," she mumbled. "I could call it _Twaddle_ or _Brain Rot_."

What was sad was Mana was actually considering this possibly for a second. But she quickly dropped it when she figured her editor would not be too pleased with such dribble.

Mana had been having this issue for the past few weeks. She couldn't seem to write anything. Even with a deadline fast approaching, she couldn't seem to spit anything out. She knew she needed to get this done, but that pressure wasn't helping. Mana couldn't think of anything to do that might help her.

"Shit, shit, shit," she muttered, hitting her head against the keyboard.

She kept doing it – followed by a curse word each time – only to stop when she heard a _crack_. Her head shot straight up just as the "J" key popped out and flew to the floor. With all her head banging, she broke her keyboard without even meaning to.

"Shit!" she cried out, rushing for the bouncing "J"-key.

She dropped to the floor and cupped her hands over the "J". As she knelt down, she grabbed the key and got up. She'd need to fix her keyboard before she could finish – well, technically start – writing. She placed the key on her desk and went on a search of some sort of glue that could save her keyboard. She didn't want to have to buy a new one; she didn't have that sort of money. Really she didn't know why she was even banging her head against her keyboard in the first place, especially seeing how she couldn't afford to anyway.

"I think I have some glue in my nightstand," she mumbled.

She rushed to her room located at the back of her apartment. She flicked on the light and rushed to her nightstand, which had a complete mess lying on top of it. Inside the drawer was no better. Mana was a complete mess, not putting much effort into cleaning. The drawer was full of miscellaneous knickknacks and whatnots that didn't really have a home; or if they did, Mana never really bothered to find it. Everything seemed to be in there, yet amongst this array of clutter, she did not find glue. She eventually closed the drawer, and while standing up, began to wonder where to search next. That is when the lights blinked once and then completely turned off.

"Don't tell me," she whispered, making her way over to the light switch.

After flicking it a couple of times, she confirmed what she had feared. Electricity had gone out. At least she hadn't had anything unsaved open on her computer. But that also meant she couldn't work on anything also. Mana walked over to the window, staring out, trying to figure out if it was the entire neighborhood or just her block.

"Wow," she said, gazing at the scene. "It looks like it is the entire city."

From her second-story apartment window, Mana couldn't see everything. But she sure could see enough. It was just like she said; it appeared to be the entire city. The building that usually stood high and lit up, looking like totems in the darkness, were pitch black and blend into the black sky.

"Seriously," she muttered. "I guess there is nothing I can do, aside from getting upset about it. And what is that going to do?"

Maybe it was life throwing her a break. Maybe it knew she needed one and her editor couldn't get mad at her for not writing seeing how she can't even turn on her computer.

And just as she was about to take this break handing to her and go lay down on her bed for a bit, something caught her eye. Really it was a bunch of "somethings". A cluster of shooting stars suddenly formed in the sky. Mana had never seen something like this. She had seen meteor showers before, but none that just formed out of nowhere; and none that traveled this fast. One second they were high in the sky, the next they appeared to split from their group and come crashing down to the ground.

"That's strange," she muttered to herself as she watched the scene unfold. "Wait! What?!"

She shouted as she noticed one take a sharp turn towards her direction. She had no time to react as the ball of light crashed through her window and hit her square in the chest. All she could remember was the glass of the broken window going everywhere with a loud shattering noise and a searing pain in her chest. She quickly passed out.

* * *

 **This story takes place in a fictional city called Coeur City. It follows nine individuals as they must navigate a new world unfolding in front of them. As during the night of December 22nd, Winter Solstice, nine "stars" shot through the sky. However these weren't typical stars, as they crashed down into Earth, connecting with nine humans. They granted these nine humans a special form, a form which they are also given powers with. They then choose whether to use these powers for good – to fight the monsters that seem to be showing up – or for evil – to fight** _ **with**_ **the monsters showing up. In the end, it is a classic battle of good versus evil with an unclassic form.**

 **I am currently not accepting any characters. Here are the characters that were accepted...**

Chikara de la Nuit  
Felix McAllister  
Haru Wakagi  
Jarik Kensaki  
Kauro Nakamura  
Mana Haoma  
Reyna Banderas  
Sango Nishimura  
Sterling Hirako  
West Carter  
Whitaker Parker


	2. Chapter 1

**Thank-you to all of you who submitted a character; every single one, including those not accepted, brought me much joy. Sadly I could not accept them all. I had to make cuts. Still I hope you will enjoy the story, even if your character did not make the cut, and will continue to read it. And for those whose character did make it, I hope you enjoy it that much more. Also, thank-you to all who reviewed. Make sure to keep reviewing.**

 **Anyway, before I take up any more space with this. Here is the chapter…**

* * *

 _ **Chapter One: "A Different Way to Start the Day"**_

* * *

Light was streaming in through her window when Mana finally came to. Her landline was ringing off the hook, with each buzz rattling her ears more and more. The young redhead sat up, unable to remember what had happened the night before. She found herself lying on the floor, though she didn't remember how she got there. Or why her window was shattered inward and broken glass laid sprawled out around her. Or why her chest hurt so badly, like someone hit her square in the chest. She couldn't remember anything.

Mana managed to stand up, amidst the confusion and without touching the broken, jagged glass. And with just a wee bit of the coordination she could muster in her state, Mana managed to weave her way through the glass without touching any of it and cutting herself. She fell onto her clear bed, the phone still going off on top of the nightstand.

"Seriously, why don't you ever shut up when I want you to?" mumbled the young lady to the phone.

She propped herself up on her elbows, unable to sit up properly without some help. She slowly raised herself more and more, until she was completely up. She was still propping herself up, but she was sitting up and that she was proud of. Her head hurt about as much as her chest, so trying to do anything felt like it was out of the question. She picked up the phone, but before she could bring it fully to her ear, a shouting woman began on the other side.

"Where have you been?!" the woman yelled loud enough for Mana to hold the phone facing away from her and still be able to hear clearly.

She took a sigh, recognizing the voice. She didn't need to look at the caller ID to know it was her editor, Diana Glasgow. She was typically a sweet and generous woman. It was those two traits that actually brought Mana to Glasgow. Mana though she was going to be an easy editor to work with. And while Glasgow can be sweet during the day hours – even when you first meet her – during work hours, an entirely new person comes out. That pleasant and enjoyable woman disappears for a hard, loud, heart-crushing, ball-stomping, work-pushing monster. She gets tunnel vision and only focuses on one thing, and that thing is work. She doesn't care if you're tired, if you have writer's block, if you're sad; if you have work, she will make sure you do it.

First time Mana ever met this side was when she was late with the first draft of her second book. Mana tried to approach Glasgow with humour; big mistake.

"I'm sorry," Mana said. "I think I fainted. I was working on the book-"

"That's what I need to talk to you about," Glasgow interrupted, obviously not caring about Mana's answer anyway. "There are issues due to last night's power outage. I need to talk to you asap; face-to-face. Meet me at Luna's."

"Alright," Mana agreed.

Before she could say anything else, Glasgow hung up; though Mana already knew she was going to do that, or at least she expected it. It was what Glasgow did. She had a serious problem listening to other people whenever she was in her hectic work mode. But she was a great editor.

Mana took a look around her room. Her window was completely broken, leaving anything, or anyone, to come in. She didn't have time right now to fix it, but she couldn't leave it like it was.

"I'll have to put something over it for right now," she decided.

And that something ended up being tin foil. With a little scotch tape, she covered the gaping hole with the cheap metal wrap. And after a few quick sweeps of a broom, she got the broken glass off the floor. She was still a bit dizzy from her headache, but she had to push through it. This was her job after all. A little headache and some minor amnesia wouldn't slow her down.

After quickly throwing on one of her cheap pantsuits, Mana rushed out the door. She was going so quickly, she almost forgot her keys. She wouldn't be able to get very far without them, though.

"Luna's" was a coffee shop in the city. It was where all the "hip" and "happening" people hung out, or so claimed Glasgow. Mana didn't really know if that was true, as she never went there without Glasgow. Glasgow loved the place though and always chose it as their meeting place. Whether it was urgent or not, it was always Luna's.

Mana hopped in her car – a beat-up clunker of a sedan – and made her way over there. As it puttered down the road, Mana's thoughts wandered.

"I wonder what she wants to talk about?" Mana thought aloud.

The streets were backed up with morning rush hour, so Mana had all the time in the world to think about what Glasgow wanted. She didn't mention precisely, but did specify it had something to do with her new book. But that narrowed it down. She was Mana's editor. If Glasgow was calling her, it was more than likely to be about something she was writing.

"I hope she didn't change the deadline again," Mana said, huffing at the thought.

She really liked to do that.

Suddenly – tearing Mana away from her thoughts – a loud shriek rang out. It echoed down the street, even over the noise of the cars; even over the noise of Mana's wheezing engine. A bunch of, much larger, pick-up trucks surrounded her, so Mana couldn't see where the scream came from. But that didn't stop her from craning her neck around to try to find the source. Mana kept looking and spotted a person running down the center of the road, between the lanes. He didn't look like the person who would own the previous scream, but he did looked scared out of his mind. He kept looking back, as if watching for something following him. It hadn't taken too long for Mana to figure out that something indeed was following him. A lot of _somethings_ , to be precise.

"What the hell are those things?!" she shouted.

They weren't like anything Mana had seen before. Three small black pup-sized creatures were following the man at full speed. They weren't entirely black, opting for red fur at the tips of the fur on their head and red on their four feet. There was also red markings on their faces, looking more like warrior pant than fur patterns. Mana didn't know of any animal with this colouring. But that wasn't what truly scared her, and probably not the guy either. It was what was at the center of this group. Standing in at almost five feet, this creature standing amongst these "pups" looked almost humanoid while standing on its hind legs. If it wasn't for the black fur and the red mane, that is. This monster looked well more dangerous than the pups, which was probably why the man looked so terrified instead of just concerned.

Mana remained silent, slouching down to hide behind her door. Thankfully everything was locked and all the windows were rolled up. The only thing she had to worry about was her engine. Her car was still going and making all sorts of noise. It didn't seem to be attracting them yet, but one sudden change and they might be all over the car. And she was too afraid to turn it off, for the exact same reason.

"Zore-ooa!" howled the smallest creatures, with the bigger one joining in with a, "Zore-oo-ark!"

"Please just move, please just move," she prayed silently as they continued to howl while chasing the man.

Mana felt horrible for not helping the guy, but she was too afraid to risk her life to try to help him. With her luck anyway, she would probably end up getting them both killed and who would that help. At least she would have a guarantee she would be alive… She knew all of this was just confirming her selfishness, but she didn't really have the time to worry about that. She was too busy trying not to gather attention.

"Urgh," she grunted, grabbing ahold of her chest.

Now wasn't the time. Her chest was hurting and she didn't know why. Was it because she wasn't helping the guy? Or did it have something to do with the other night, the one she could remember? Either way, she did not need this. She stifled the grunts of pain, but not well enough…

"Zore! Zorua!" cried out one of the creatures, now much closer.

 _Shit_ , Mana thought just as she felt something collide with her car.

* * *

 _Poké-Entry_

 _Zorua, the Tricky Fox Pokémon, and Zoroark, the Illusion Fox Pokémon… Zorua likes to transform into people and other Pokémon. It usually uses the confusion set up by the illusions to run, but can grow a bit braver when around its evolved form, Zoroark. Zoroark has stronger illusion skills; much better than any Zorua. Zoroarks tend to be protective of its possessions, using its powers to protect what they see as theirs. Either of these Pokémon can be bad if you cannot manage to see passed their tricks._

* * *

 **So there it was; there was the first chapter. Why do you think? I don't want to give away any spoilers as to what is going to happen next, so I'll keep my mouth closed. Instead, what do you think is going to happen next?**

 **Also, at the end of every chapter, I am going to have a "Poké-Entry". If there are new Pokémon introduced in that chapter, I will give them a true look at in the entry.**


	3. Chapter 2

**I am planning on updating every week at least, like my other story. I may update more, depending on my schedule, but I won't hold any promises. If I try to set up a schedule it will most likely fail, so I will stick to this "at least once a week" idea.**

 **Thank-you to everyone who reviewed; I loved reading all the thoughts and comments. Keep up the brilliant work.**

* * *

 _ **Chapter Two: "Stuck in a Car, But Not for Long"**_

* * *

The car rocked with every head-butt and body slam. Mana had been hoping if they didn't see her, they would just leave. But it seemed as if that was wrong. The creatures were continuously attack her heap. She didn't know if it was because of the sounds the car made or if they heard her grunting in pain. She continued to slouch down, hoping it was the car they were after and not her.

 _One way_ , she thought.

There was one way to figure out. Have the car pretend to "die". She slowly, and carefully, raised her hand up just enough to reach the keys while not announcing her presence to those outside. She grasped the keys and flicked the car off. The engine made a clanking noise as it gradually stopped. As the car turned off, the collisions slowed down a bit before stopping as well.

 _Did it work_? she wondered.

She was too afraid to look out the window to see if they were still there, so she remained slouching. Just then an ear-shattering cry made her glad she did.

"ZORE!" it howled. "OO-ARK!"

It sounded like the larger creature and it sounded close. Mana closed her eyes, praying silently to just be left alone. She clutched her chest. It had stopped hurting, but she feared the pain would come back. And she didn't want to make a sound if it did. She just wanted to get out of this alive.

"Zore!" the creatures cried out in unison.

It sounded like they were howling like wolves, almost like they were signaling something. It couldn't be another monster… Hopefully, it couldn't be.

"Zoo-ark!"

Just as the cry echoed out, Mana opened her eyes. From what she could see out of her window – which was just a little sliver from the top – it seemed almost impossible. What looked like purple pillar of light shooting straight up was coming from the area the monsters had been. Pink waves of light were pulsating from the towering beam. It looked so stunning that Mana had to remind herself to stay down. She almost sat up so she could see it better.

"Ooa! Ooa!"

The little ones chirped in a rather happy manner. When they sounded like that it was easy to forget they were attacking people just a few minutes ago. What really confused Mana was, what was going on with that pillar and why were they so happy? As if to answer Mana's unspoken question, the pillar disappeared.

"Why did you call me here?"

It was a human voice. Mana's eyes shot open as she listened to the English-speaking being take to the monsters.

"I was busy on the other side of town," the masculine voice said. "Didn't Yveltal say you deal with this area?"

The guy was truly talking to them, as if they could understand him. Mana didn't understand what was going on. Was this guy the person who was controlling the monsters? Maybe it was the name the man dropped… Yveltal, or something like that. Mana's curiosity was growing. They sounded close, but if she just peeked up quickly and then ducked back down, maybe she wouldn't be noticed.

She steadied her breath and braced herself. Turning sideways a bit, she tried to remain steady as she slowly peeked up. With only her eyes peering above the door, she looked out. She bit her lip, holding back any noise of surprise, as she witnessed what was going on. The man she had thought to be human was nothing of the sort. He was a monster just like those creatures.

Really, the man was a humanoid figure, though defiantly not truly human. It wasn't his face or body or stance that defied him for what he was, but instead the two red, diamond-shaped animalistic ears popping up from his platinum hair and the fiery tail protruding from his backside.

 _What is this guy?_

Mana continued to stare until her dark blue eyes met those of a lighter teal shade. She darted back down, falling onto the semi-cushioned car seat on her back. The car shook a bit as she fumbled getting down. It was obvious someone was in it, especially as she just met the eyes of the guy.

"I see," she could hear him say.

Suddenly her chest began to hurt again.

 _Not again_ , she thought.

She clutched her chest, doubling over in pain. Her eyes were close tightly, but she didn't need to see. She could sense the guy was getting closer to the car. So there she was, in major pain, unable to protect herself, and now having been made by some monster-human guy. She could wonder if things could get any worse, but why welcome more trouble.

"Zore!" the larger monster shouted. "Oo-ark!"

"Wait!" the guy said.

But his warnings fell on apparently deaf ears, as the monster lunged at the shaking car. Without any warning aside from the cry, the monster attacked the cry. Mana cried out as the car was thrown sideways. The car wasn't sent very far, as it landed – tires to the ground – on the nearby sidewalk. She opened her eyes just slightly and saw the monster looking in through the window, down at her. She began to scream as the monster clawed its way against the door.

Her car was not the newest car and thus was not going to last long against the monster's attacks. Her door was already starting to warp inward due to the monster's attacks. Mana sat up and crawled over to the passenger side. She needed to get away, but was afraid to leave the car. If she did, she would be outside with all of the monsters and the scary-looking guy. But if she stayed in the car, she was pretty much a sardine – ready to be eaten.

"Get away!" she screamed at the monster.

 _SKKRREEEEEECCCHHH!_ The sounds of metal scratching against metal echoed out, causing Mana to cover her ears. The door had been broken, so much so, the creature was able to rip it entirely off in one smooth sweep.

"I said to wait!" the man said, running up to the car.

"Zoo!" the creature said back in an angry tone.

The creature looked back at the man, snarling. Mana took this chance and, after unlocking the door slowly as to not make noise, darted out the door.

"Hey!" the man shouted after her. "Seriously!"

Mana looked back and did not see the man anymore. Nor did she see the large creature or any of the smaller ones. Instead her entire field of vision was taken up by her car which had been hurdled straight at her.

* * *

 **Chapter two is now done and up. What did you guys think? I was having a little more issues writing this chapter, as I was trying to get it to go with a flow. I was flipping through characters and which one was going to be introduced, slightly. But I found him and his name will be dropped next chapter, though I suppose the creator of him already knows.**

 **Remember to review and hope you have a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!**

 ***Shameless plug below***

 **I have decided – with nothing better than to add another story to my plate – to add, of course, add another story to my plate. Though I wanted to stray away from Pokemon, having two stories already; So I am proud to introduce my first ever Avatar: The Last Airbender story, "My Precious Bell".**

 **It takes place in a world where the Fire Nation took over the world; defeating the Air Nomads, the Earth Kingdom, and the Water Tribe. The war had been going on for years, but finally ended. Or so the Fire Nation thought. A group of rebels are willing to do what it takes to bring back the balance. It is an SYOC and is currently** **OPEN** **! Here's a look at it.**

" _I live in a world where people can do wondrous things. Where a person can make waves with just a gesture of their hand; or another person can move a mountain with a simple kick; or someone can summon a flame with a flick of the fingers; or a person can fly with the help of a plain stick. Or so they used to. No more thanks to my home, the Fire Nation. Now the fairytale that used to be my world has been changed, stained by blood and turned into one filled with war. Now those people who could once make waves are being arrested; those who moved mountains being forced into servitude; the people who once flew free now grounded forever; and those who summon flames burn everything to the ground in front of them. This is my world, but not for long."_


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: "A Sip of Circumstances"**

* * *

"I'm sure she will be here soon enough."

Glasgow kept a large smile on her face, though she was panicking underneath. She wasn't sure what was going on. She had called Mana a while ago and she should have been there by now. It wasn't like Mana to be late, especially if Glasgow mentioned it was important. Mana took stuff like this – stuffed that involved her work and livelihood – seriously.

Across from the worrying middle-aged editor was the person she was trying to entertain and keep there. The pale male sat across from her, sipping his black coffee seemingly uninterested. His dark hair fell in front of his face, though Glasgow was still able to see his light brown eyes due to his thick-framed glasses displacing some of the shaggy hair. He didn't have an irritated expression, which Glasgow was thankful for and hoped that that meant there was still a chance to impress the guy. He just seemed more focused on the coffee.

"This is good coffee," he finally said.

Glasgow paused for a second and then replied, holding back a thankful sigh that he didn't mention Mana's absence.

"Yes, it is. That's why I always come here," she responded.

"Ah, but I like Naka's better and it is always nice to support a local "Ma and Pa"-type shop," he said.

"Oh, I guess I should check it out sometime," Glasgow said.

The guy paused to take another sip before placing the cup down and taking a deep breath.

"I was surprised to hear back. It seems now a days most authors are refusing to have their creations turned into movies," he said.

"Oh, no. It's us who are truly the surprised ones. To have Jarik Kensaki come to us to turn a book into a movie; it is an honour. No one in their right mind wouldn't be excited about such a proposition," Glasgow said.

The guy, Jarik Kensaki, simply smiled at the compliment. He knew his name was getting big, even though he had really just stared directing the previous year. His first movie had gotten great reviews, but it was still not enough for everyone to hold faith in his abilities. He was still being shot down by companies and authors alike.

"I was impressed by Miss Haoma's book. The idea having two characters with seemingly different personalities and even different morals, forced to cooperate to survive was interesting. And though many have tried to use this tactic before, I felt like her way of doing it was unique," Jarik explained. "I was truly impressed and that is why I'm happy to actually have a chance to discuss putting the book to script."

Glasgow nodded. She was excited to and was actually going to surprise Mana with this. This was the first time anything like this had been presented to either of them, the writer or the editor. Glasgow thought the young author would have been so excited for the chance to see one of her books on the big screen. But if Mana continued to be so late, there was a chance that the possibility would pass her by before she even got to know about it.

 _Where is she?_ wondered Glasgow.

As her smile faltered, Jarik went to say something to the editor. She looked nervous, though Jarik questioned why in his head. With the way traffic always is in the city, that was most likely why Miss Haoma was late. He could understand that and was more concerned about the editor having a panic attack more so than how late the author may be.

"Miss Glas–" but before Jarik could finish, he was interrupted.

"Oh my!"

The shout came from the back of the store. A waitress stared in horror at a television screen, gasping loudly. The entire store went silent as someone turned up the television.

"Monsters have been sighted," the newscaster said. "This is no prank people. Monsters – black and red dog-like creatures – have been attacking cars heading in to the city. Reports say that there have been much damage and injuries, though how much damage or how many injuries and to what extent has not been determined yet. We ask that anyone trying to enter the city or planning on entering the city, to not. Stay inside and if you're in a car, get inside as quickly as possibly."

It sounded as if a prank. That is until an amateur video popped on of the monsters they explained. Small dog-like creatures were shown ramming cars and chasing people. It looked like something out of a movie. Glasgow gasped along with the rest of the café. Jarik just stared at the television silently. He didn't know how to react. However, he did have the need to react and do something; how, he just didn't know.

* * *

 **I'm back from my short break. I'm sorry guys. I decided to take the past two weeks off due to the holidays. I wanted to spend time with my family. I did update "My Precious Bell", but decided to leave my Pokemon stories alone during the time. I just wanted a break. I'm back now, albeit with a smaller chapter. I was trying to think of what to write, and decided this route. It isn't really a big chapter, but it isn't technically a side chapter; so there's that. I should come back to Mana's situation next week and we should get some possible explanation… Maybe.**

 **Anywho, remember to review. It is what keeps me going! :)**


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